I'm a big Ilmor fan, but I'd have to go with the Merc because it's upgradable via Whipple. I'd probably get bored of stock power after a year or two.

The ilmor can be supercharged and is a beast

the ilmor can not be supercharged with out a new bottom end or run such conservative set up that it would not be worth the cost

Oh really now
Ilmor states differently, I'd be curious on more true info.

One of the Companies that puts Turbo's on Viper Engines is right here in Charlotte. They seem to have it figured out & build some incredibly fast / quick cars but I don't know that the same engine mods would survive at 5000 rpm for 20-30mins let alone on the wood for any real length of time.

http://www.undergroundracing.com/ sorry for the hijack, my intent was to clarify whats available & whats likely to survive from a reliability standpoint.

I'm very well aware of underground. One of their former 1200+ rwhp vipers belongs to a good friend. It's currently in pieces, He wanted more power and learned the limit of what the block would hold lol. They do great work but making that sort of power survive in a car vs a boat is very different.

Agreed

What about them using the Dodge V10 Truck Block? It's cast iron

I don't believe the question is whether it can be done or that the cast iron block isn't a good solution I just think ILMOR themselves isn't interested in going down this path. They are a very engineering based company that puts allot of R&D into anything they plan to release to the general public. They've built their reputation by offering reliable power & components w/ excellent customer service & support.

I don't know of anyone in the marine industry making aftermarket goodies for ILMOR V-10's nor do I know of anyone experimenting w/ them to make more power. Seems most are happy w/ what they've invested in knowing there aren't any options to customize.

Boost power has a nice turbo system for the illmor, last I knew in the 900-1,000 hp range